WWF Reports 52% Decline in Vertebrate Species Since 1970

The world’s population of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish has declined 52% since 1970, and in the 10^th edition of its Living Planet Report, the World Wildlife Fund points to climate and ecological change as one of three leading causes. “We ignore their decline at our peril,” WWF warns. “We are using nature’s gifts as if we had more than just one Earth at our disposal. By taking more from our ecosystems and natural processes than can be replenished, we are jeopardizing our very future. Nature conservation and sustainable development go hand in hand.” Humanity’s demand for resources has exceeded the planet’s capacity for the last 40 years, “with people in industrialized countries consuming resources and services at a much faster rate,” Thorpe notes. “This continuing overshoot is making it more and more difficult to meet the needs of a growing global human population, as well as to leave space for other species.”